9 Web Design Trends to Focus on in 2018

With more and more individuals and businesses creating websites, it’s becoming more critical than ever to stay up-to-date with your web design trends.

Technology is always changing, but we’ve got the latest trends you need to keep your eye on for 2018.

Let’s get into them!

1. Mobile First

With consumers turning to their smartphones for information and entertainment, it’s crucial to have a seamless and optimal mobile platform.

We predict mobile-friendly platforms are not just a thing of 2018 — they represent web design trends that will likely dominate the future.

Do yourself a favor and learn more about the significance of focusing on mobile traffic and mobile trends.

Some key things to look out for include:

Flat designs

Animated logos

Scroll-triggered animations

Virtual reality video

Chatbots and AI

Voice user interface and searching

2. Scroll-Friendly

When people use their mobile phones, they don’t want to be clicking on a bunch of different pages to get what they need.

Both infinite and parallax scrolling continue to dominate as mobile web designs. They are aesthetically pleasing and very user-friendly, especially if you provide lengthy word content.

Rather than focus on massive, information-packed homepages, consider taking a more straightforward approach.

Use one or two feature words on the first homepage. Rather than add a bunch of extra pages, just use scrolling features. Keep the design pleasing enough that people will want to continue scrolling, and scrolling, and scrolling!

3. Beautiful Color Schemes

While the minimalistic look dominated the industry over the past few years, we expect the trend to unfold into something, well, brighter.

Play around with vibrancy and supersaturation. It’s memorable, fun, and guaranteed to be huge.

Color schemes that we predict will be successful? Beautiful pastels and bright, neon colors. This will be the era of standing out and popping with color, rather than just blending into a neutral background.

4. Bold, Dynamic Typography

Creative typography remains one of the top leaders in emerging graphic design trends.

When it comes to mastering typography, keep this rule in mind; go bold or go home.

Consider brainstorming with erasing parts of letters (cropped typography), or even using chaotic typography (dismissing normal aligning and normal sequence of letters or words).

Whatever you do, this is your time to make your typography noticeable. Give it a WOW factor (just make sure it’s legible and user-friendly).

More and more companies are branching out to using custom typography forms. This may be something to consider if you are looking to freshen up your website.

5. Video

You know the drill. You turn on a funny cat video, and you’re suddenly in the never-ending vortex of engaging entertainment.

Turns out, people really like videos. They are easy to watch, engaging to learn from, and they are fun to share.

Take this knowledge to your advantage. Many successful websites now feature dynamic videos or blurbs on their landing pages. With video, the sky is the limit regarding what kind of content you can produce.

Not so confident in your cinematography skills? You may want to outsource to a pro for the job. Nothing is worse than a grainy or blurry video.

Remember, the video provides you with the invaluable chance to reveal the personality behind the website. With many consumers wanting to know your personal ethics and backstory, this is a great way to do it!

6. Enhanced Social Media Integration

As people continue gravitating towards smaller screens for their entertainment, we predict that social media trends on Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat will continue to rise.

Integrating social media remains one of the leading web design trends because you can seamlessly shift from sharing trending articles to linking your various platforms to engaging with your audience.

A website is only as good as its traffic and visitors. Social media helps move your website from a tiny corner of the Internet universe to top Google searches.

8. Authentic Photo Content

Instead, people wish to see engaging and dynamic photos, ones that evoke emotions and tell a story. Whether you outsource to a professional photographer or subscribe to a content site, good photography is essential for creating a beautiful page.

These kinds of images dominate successful landing pages and blog content. When coupled with the right typography and layout, pictures do tell a thousand words about your business.

9. GIFS

You’ve seen them on Facebook. Your friends likely tag you on them on Instagram. GIFs are one of the hottest trends of the year and for good reason. GIFS are everywhere, and people absolutely love them.

They’re fun and easygoing and they can pack quite a visual punch.

Similar to video and pictures, research is showing that more people prefer visual communication. GIFS provide that in a no-nonsense, straightforward kind of way.

Not to mention, they’re fun to play around with and easy to make as part of your overall marketing campaign.

Final Thoughts on The Hottest Web Design Trends

In every industry, it’s important to stay aware of the trends and ahead of the curve. You don’t want to be playing catch-up as we enter 2018.

The new year will bring the use of video, bold and bright colors, mobile-friendly sites and more.